Posted on Monday, November 23, 2015Placing a lifetime cap on voluntary superannuation contributions could actually end up costing more money to the budget, a report by the Parliamentary Budget Office (PBO) commissioned by the Greens found.Read the rest of entry »

The benchmark ASX 200 has dropped back below 5000 and is approaching the lows reached late September as further falls in commodity prices and the shock of the Paris terrorist attacks hits the ASX.

The big banks - a preferred way for foreigners to play the Aussie market - have taken a hit and are leading the falls, with the top 200 measure down 68 points at 4983. Only 15 stocks in the index are trading up.

CBA is down 1.3 per cent, ANZ 1.9 per cent, Westpac 1.4 per cent and NAB 1.6 per cent.

BHP is 1.1 per cent lower at $20 at the latest reading, while Rio is off 1.9 per cent. The supermarket owners, Woolies and Wesfarmers, are down around 1.5 per cent and Telstra 1.2 per cent.

Among the winners are the gold miners, presumably as investors buy producers of a commodity typically linked to outperformance during times of high uncertainty. Newcrest is up 2.8 per cent.

Tatts Group is 3.2 per cent higher as the company confirmed failed merger talks with Tabcorp, which is off 2.6 per cent.

Posted on Monday, November 16, 2015Although the US economy has had its ups and downs, the US dollar is still strong. Part of the reason why is how miserable the rest of the world has been doing, but another part is how well the economy has weathered the storm.Read the rest of entry »

Posted on Monday, November 2, 2015If you’re wondering what has caused markets to turn, you need to take a look at six market factors all conveniently beginning with the letter C – China, consumer demand, commodities, currencies, central banks and company earnings.Read the rest of entry »